Howya! I actually wasn't going to do a 'New Year's Resolutions'-style blog post because I find they're quite annoying and boring ahaha but I was just thinking and these 8 things popped up in my head, hopefully they'll help you some bit!
And I promise I'm not trying to be preachy or better-than-you or anything like that! These are just 8 simple things that you can apply to your everyday life that I hope will benefit you in even just a small way! I'm still working on them too, please don't think I do these every day ahaha, nobody's perfect!
Here are 8 simple things that you can do that'll hopefully help you have a fab 2018 and an even more amazing life!
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1. Eat more plants
2. Move (exercise!)
3. Meditate
4. Drink (more) water
5. Build healthy relationships with others
6. Laugh more!
7. Put away your phone (don't be on it 24/7)
8. Live in the now
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1. Eat more plants
I won't get into the science of it ahaha don't worry, but basically eating more plant-based foods has been proven to be so so beneficial, not only to us humans, but to the other animals on this beautiful planet, and to the planet itself!
Why not try to sneak more fruit and veg and whole-foods into your diet?!
If you're not sure where to start why not start with breakfast and have an 'aul read of this breakfast blog post that I did!
Or maybe your breakfast is already sorted, fab! Then give this butternut squash and sweet potato soup a go, or even try this super simple quinoa and kidney bean chili!
Here are some more ideas about how to get more fruit and veg into your diet:
- Throw a large handful of spinach into the next curry you make for dinner
- Smoothies!!!!! My favourite things ever, so easy to make and so filling! Definitely invest in a smoothie maker/blender/whatever-ya-call-it, you won't regret it! You can get one for as cheap as €15.
- Try make some healthy plant-based snacks like these cacao and coconut energy balls! They're ridiculously easy to make, taste delicious, and they're so handy to have as a snack if you're on the go or for lunch!
- The next time you go shopping, pick up a random fruit or veg that you've never eaten/eaten very little of, go home and Google a recipe with it and make something cool with it! That way you'll be eating a new fruit/veg every time and you won't even realise!
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2. Move (exercise!)
You can read this blog post if you want to listen to me get into more detail about why I think exercise is so important, but basically we're humans, we're designed to move!!!
If you spend the whole day sitting down I bet ya you feel like shite at the end of the day ahaha! We have to move, in whatever way you fancy, in order to stay healthy.
Go for a run, climb a mountain, go swimming, play some golf, do some zumba, do some yoga, whatever energises you and makes you happy then do that!
Find what you love and go and do that!
Not only will exercising improve your physical health, it's brilliant for your mental health too. Exercising gives you time just to rest your mind and forget about everything you have to do, so why not give it a go!
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3. Meditate
I've always been into meditation but I've never had a proper routine, it's always been on and off. This year I'm changing that and I hope you will too!
My plan for this year is to meditate for 10 minutes every morning and for another 10 minutes every night. At the moment I've meditated every night, but to tell you the truth I haven't meditated any morning yet so I must change that ahaha!
Now when I say meditation I'm not talkin' about anything fancy, all I do is sit down cross-legged on a rug in my bedroom, close my eyes, and just chill out!
I got an email with a fab New Year's offer for Headspace so I actually just subscribed to that! Headspace is genuinely the best meditation app that I've ever come across, it's the best of the best!
And I mean that genuinely, it's class! There's a free trial for 10 days but if you're interested I'd highly recommend subscribing to this app, it'll change your life, literally!
So yeah I sit down on my rug, put on a Headspace meditation, and just chill out!
I can't even begin to tell you how meditation has improved every aspect of my life, literally!
I really do recommend doing a bit of research into it yourself, and even just taking 5 minutes every day to sit and just chill out, it's so so worth it, trust me!
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4. Drink (more) water
Okay, first of all let me apologise for not having a water-related picture for this point ahaha so a smoothie bowl will have to do! Well, I suppose there's water in fruit so it's kind of related to the point that I'll be making!
If you already drink lots of water, then congrats to you! But sadly I'm one of those people who just doesn't remember to drink water throughout the day!
(I'm going to be taking my own advice here but...) My top tip for anyone trying to drink more water is to get a cool reusable water bottle that you really like and then you should be more motivated to drink more water!
Also, waking up a few minutes earlier each morning will allow you to have a big glass of water which'll just help in so many ways! Hydration is keyyyyy.
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5. Build healthy relationships with others
It's so easy to take others for granted, be it your family, your friends, whoever it may be. This year, why not take time to acknowledge those relationships and try and make them as positive and as beneficial for everyone as possible!
Let your friend know how much you love them, bake some cookies for your sister, go guitar shopping with your brother, whatever you want to let them know how much they mean to you!
Focus on the positives in your relationship, the good stuff, and try to always remember how amazing they make you feel!
And of course if there's anyone in your life who you have a negative relationship with, then try and let that simmer away and let them go their own way. There's no point in hanging around with toxic friends who just bring down your mood and make you feel bad about yourself, you're worth so much more than that!!!
So yesss, defo let your family/friends/whoever know how much you love them and be thankful for having such amazing humans in your life!
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6. Laugh more!
Life's too short!
Laugh as much as you want!
Before I go any further I must explain the picture of the hole in my sock: So I was in Dublin with my best friend and we arrived at our hostel for the night and I took off my boots and it turns out that we did so much walking that I made a hole in my sock ahahaha oh I thought it was gas!
There are too many people in this world who don't laugh at silly things, it actually annoys me like!
Now, obvs I'm not saying you should laugh at everything, laughing definitely isn't appropriate 24/7 ahaha but I guess my point is just to enjoy life more!
We're all going to die in the end so why not enjoy yourself as much as you can, and if that means laughing/having fun/making a fool of yourself then go for it!
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7. Put away your phone (don't be on it 24/7)
I think since nearly everything is online it's so easy to get swept up in an online bubble and just scroll endlessly on Instagram or be constantly emailing or Snapchatting people.
Just to clarify: I'm not anti-phones or anti-technology ahaha! I just wish people appreciated themselves and others more to put their phones away and just embrace the present moment.
What I don't understand is when I see a group of people all on their phones, and instead of talking to each other, they're all talking to other people on their phones! I just don't get it!
I'm not saying that you can never go on your phone or that you're a bad person if you check your texts while you're with your friend, but I just wish in society that there'd be less of an emphasis put on technology and more of an emphasis put on actual conversation and genuine relationships!
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8. Live in the now
I know this is wayyyyy easier said than done, but I think it's something everyone should try this year if they've never tried it before. I know it's not a mind-blowing idea or anything but I feel as if so many people are caught up in all the small bits and bobs they have to do, that they forget how to enjoy life and they miss the point entirely.Definitely technology has a part to play in this...maybe if there weren't constant notifications from Instagram or endless emails from someone then maybe we could all be more present, but sadly life isn't like that!
My top tip if you're feeling a bit overwhelmed/unsure/scared/anxious about life for any reason at all is to take 3 very deep breaths in and then let 3 very deep breaths out.
I know it might sound a bit silly but it allows you a few seconds just to focus on the breath, it brings you back to the present moment, and hopefully it should help you to change your mindset and focus on what's truly important in that moment.
I think "living in the now" is just a combination of all the points that I've already made ahaha, but basically I'm just saying to take life easy, don't stress over the small stuff, and enjoy the journey!
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So there we have it, my 8 tips that'll hopefully help you have a brill 2018 and a fab life!
I hope you didn't find this blog post to be preachy or cringey ahaha and if you did then I'm very sorry!
If you have any top tips for 2018 or just for life that you think will help others then defo leave a comment down below, or you can let me know via email (plantpoweredhuman@gmail.com) or over on my Instagram!
Thank you so much for reading this blog post and I hope you have the most amazing 2018!
See ya next week for another blog post!
Big love,
Darragh
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